USS Aulick (DD-569)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
USS Aulick off Mare Island on February 24, 1945
USS Aulick off Mare Island on February 24, 1945
Overview
Type destroyer
Shipyard

Consolidated Steel Corporation

Keel laying May 14, 1941
Launch March 2, 1942
1. Period of service flag
period of service

October 27, 1942-18. April 1946

Whereabouts 1959
canceled to Greece in 1997
Technical specifications
displacement

2,100  ts

length

114.7 meters

width

12.2 meters

Draft

5.4 meters

crew

329

drive
speed

35 kn

Range

6,500  nautical miles (11,700 km) at 15 knots

Armament

When commissioning:

The USS Aulick (DD-569) was a for Fletcher Class belonging destroyer of the US Navy . The destroyer was mainly used in the Pacific during World War II . In 1959 the ship was handed over to the Greek Navy , which put it into service as Sfendoni (D-85) . In 1997 the destroyer was canceled.

Namesake

John H. Aulick (1787–1873) was an officer and served in the US Navy from 1809 to 1861. He took part in the British-American War in 1812 .

technology

Hull and drive

The hull of the USS Aulick was 114.7 m long and 12.2 m wide. The draft was 5.4 m, the displacement was 2,100 tons . The ship was powered by two General Electric steam turbines, and the steam was generated in four Babcock & Wilcox boilers. The power was 60,000 shaft horsepower, the top speed was 35 knots .

Armament and Electronics

The main armament of the destroyer when it was put into service were the five 5 "/ 38 Mk.30 single turrets. In addition, there were various anti-aircraft guns , which were reinforced in the course of the war.

The USS Aulick was equipped with radar . An SG and an SC radar were mounted on the mast above the bridge, with which aircraft could be located at distances between 15 and 30 nautical miles and ships between 10 and 22 nautical miles. A QC sonar was installed for underwater location .

history

The USS Aulick was laid down at Consolidated Steel Corporation in Orange, Texas on May 14, 1941 , and launched on March 2, 1942. Godmother was Charlotte L. Hyde. On October 27, 1942, the destroyer entered service under the command of Lieutenant Commander OP Thomas, Jr. After commissioning, the destroyer carried out test and training drives off the east coast of the United States and in the Gulf of Mexico .

1943

On January 23, 1943, the USS Aulick left Philadelphia and sailed through the Panama Canal into the Pacific. After a stop on Bora Bora , she reached Nouméa on February 12th . On February 20, she was assigned to Task Force (TF) 64 to assist in the landings of American troops on the Russell Islands . She left TF 64 after returning to Nouméa on February 25th. On March 1, she escorted the British aircraft carrier HMS Athene to Espiritu Santo . From there she drove to Efate . On March 9, the USS Aulick was ordered back to Nouméa. On the morning of March 10, she ran at 20 knots on a coral reef on the southern tip of New Caledonia , which severely damaged the ship's hull, propellers and engines.

After a short stay in the dry dock of Nouméa, the destroyer went to Hawaii via Suva and Pago Pago . On April 10, the towing group reached Pearl Harbor , where the destroyer was being repaired. On November 8, the USS Aulick moved to Bremerton . She went to the Puget Sound Navy Yard on November 14th , where her damaged propulsion system was being replaced. On December 23rd, she set sail for Pearl Harbor.

1944

The USS Aulick left Hawaii on January 22, 1944 and was placed under the Fleet Operational Training Command in San Francisco on February 3 . Here she was used as a training ship until May 18, 1944. On April 11, she rescued 16 crew members of a downed Martin PBM - Flight Boots .

After completing repairs at the Bethlehem Steel Shipyard , San Francisco, she returned to Pearl Harbor on June 27, where she initially participated in exercises. On July 9th, she escorted a convoy of twelve troop carriers, the destination of which was Guam . The convoy reached the island on July 22nd and participated in the landing on Guam . The destroyer stayed off Guam until August 6th. The USS Aulick patrolled the adjoining sea area and was part of the destroyer umbrella of the 5th US Fleet.

After a stop on Eniwetok , she met Task Group (TG) 32.4 on August 21, 1944 and ran with her to Guadalcanal . Preparations for the operations against the Palau Islands were made there over the next three weeks . As part of TG 32.7 , she reached the islands on September 15 and supported the landings on Peleliu and Angaur .

On September 30th, the USS Aulick set course for Manus to meet the US 7th Fleet. The fleet ran out on October 12 and reached Leyte on October 18. She was assigned to the Northern Fire Support Group , whose task was artillery support. She entered San Pedro Bay at around 7:00 a.m. on October 19 and opened fire at 11:15 a.m. Shortly after 12:00 noon the destroyer was hit by Japanese grenades and 1 man was killed by shrapnel. At 1:18 p.m. the USS Aulick ceased fire and withdrew. She repeated the mission on October 20 and 21. She was available for fire support on October 22nd and 23rd, but was not requested.

To stop the invasion, the Japanese fleet approached in three groups. The USS Aulick was part of the screen, which under the command of Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf standing Task Group (TG) 77.2 in the Surigao Strait protected. TG 77.2 was intended to intercept 1st Combat Group C , consisting of two battleships, a heavy cruiser and four destroyers, under the command of Vice Admiral Shōji Nishimura . The USS Aulick was together with USS Cony and USS Sigourney in the north of the island of Hibuson north of the cruisers on the left flank. The American destroyers began massed torpedo attacks at 3:00 a.m. A torpedo hit the Fusō , which broke up after half an hour and sank. Three of the four Japanese destroyers were also hit and incapacitated; two of them sank. The Yamashiro was also hit by a torpedo. Nishimura continued on his way, heading straight for the American battleships and cruisers, which opened fire at 3:51 a.m. While the American ships directed their fire by radar, the Japanese could not use their weapons. The Japanese ships turned and tried to escape south. The Yamashiro was hit by two more torpedoes at 4:11 a.m. and sunk. Inadvertently, the American destroyers, which were operating forwards, were shot at by their own forces. The friendly fire caused almost all of the American personnel losses in this battle. The worst hit was the USS Albert W. Grant , which was hit by seven Japanese 120 mm shells and eleven American 6 " AP shells. 38 men fell and 104 were wounded. After the battle and the early morning air strikes, remained Only one destroyer, the Shigure , remained of Nishimura's group, and American ships were ordered back to the Leyte Gulf .

When a strong Japanese unit approaching from the north was reported, the USS Aulick and five other destroyers moved into position on the south coast of Homonhon . However, the expected attack did not take place.

On October 29th the TG 77.2 ran to Seeadlerhafen . The USS Aulick set sail on November 17th to meet the USS West Virginia on Vitiaz Street and escort her to Sea Eagle Harbor. After she then escorted the battleship to Ulithi , she ran back to Leyte on November 22nd. After her arrival she belonged again to TG 77.2 and was used for anti-submarine defense in the eastern access to the Gulf of Leyte. On November 29, shortly before 6:00 p.m., it was attacked by six Japanese planes. One of the attackers' wing tips brushed the starboard side of the bridge and exploded near the bow. The explosion caused a fire in Gun 52. 31 men were killed and 64 men wounded. A man is missing. After being replaced by the USS Pringle , the USS Aulick ran to San Pedro Bay to drop off the wounded and carry out emergency repairs. On December 1, she left the bay and drove via Seeadlerhafen and Pearl Harbor to the Mare Island Navy Yard , which she reached on December 24.

1945

On February 24, 1945 sea trials of the USS Aulick began and after the crew had been trained at the San Diego naval base , the destroyer ran to Pearl Harbor. From there the ship went to Morotai via Eniwetok, Ulithi, Kossol Roads and Leyte . A week later she set course for Mindanao with parts of the 31st US Infantry Division embarked . After disembarking on April 22nd, the landing forces escorted LSTs back to Morotai. On April 30th, she set course for San Pedro Bay. From there she drove to Okinawa and anchored off Hagushi on May 16. Until the end of the war it was part of the anti-aircraft shield of the transport ships and served as a radar outpost. Between August 24 and December 2, she was used as an air traffic control boat on the route between Okinawa and Tokyo . On August 28, she rescued nine men from a crashed B-29 Superfortress . The USS Aulick left Okinawa on September 10th. Via Pearl Harbor and through the Panama Canal, she reached the port of New York on October 17th . There she took part in President Harry S. Truman's fleet tour. On November 15, 1945, the New York Navy Yard began preparations for its retirement, which took place on April 18, 1946.

Sfendoni (D 85)

The destroyer was loaned to the Greek Navy for use on August 21, 1959 and named Sfendoni (D-85) . It was bought by Greece in April 1977 and taken out of service on October 25, 1992.

Whereabouts

In 1997 the ship was canceled in Aliağa .

Awards

The USS Aulick received five Battle Stars .

literature

  • Stefan Terzibaschitsch : Destroyer of the US Navy. Bechtermünz Verlag, Augsburg 1997, ISBN 3-86047-587-8 .
  • Alan Raven: Fletcher Class Destroyers. Naval Institute Press, Annapolis 1986, ISBN 0-87021-193-5 .
  • Jerry Scutts: Fletcher DDs (US Destroyers) in action (Warships No. 8). Squadron / signal publications, Carrollton (Texas) 1995, ISBN 0-89747-336-1 .
  • Theodore Roscoe: Destroyer Operations in World War II. United States Naval Institute, Annapolis 1953.

Web links